


A Helping Paw

by critterdee_67



Series: KINTSUGI: Dean's Life [3]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Artist Castiel (Supernatural), Established Relationship, Fluff and Smut, M/M, Mental Health Patient Dean Winchester, Support dog, part of a larger story, puppies!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-06
Updated: 2019-04-08
Packaged: 2020-01-05 19:48:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18372884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/critterdee_67/pseuds/critterdee_67
Summary: We revisit Dean and Cas, this time Dean gets a therapy dog.





	1. Chapter 1

Castiel lays on the floor, laughing as the troupe of puppies lick and paw at him. Dean watches and videos the whole thing.

“They seem a bit wild,” Dean says over Cas’s laughter.

“They’re still babies, Dean.” Cas sits up and faces Dean, “But, they’ve already started their training, this is just playtime.”

“Cas…”

“Oh, good grief, will you please get down here.”

Dean cautiously steps around the pups and sits on the floor next to Cas amongst all the rambunctious puppies. Three of them quickly pounce on him while the other four continue to attack Cas’s left shoe. Cas shakes his foot to get the puppies off and stares at the little yellow balls of fur. He watches as they play and jump around, seven energetic Labrador puppies - out of which Dean must choose one.

The little puppies are in training to be therapy dogs, and Dean is on the list to receive one. He and the pup he chooses will attend classes together if he can figure out which one he wants. They’re all adorable, and Dean isn’t sure how he is supposed to choose.

The pups tire of the two men when they stop petting them and trot off to the edges of the surround; lapping at the water or curling up on the blankets. Dean and Cas watch the puppies, Dean leans against Cas and places his hand on his thigh, and Cas wraps an arm around Dean’s shoulders.

“Babe, you don’t have to pick today. But you do need to choose one soon.”

Dean nods and continues to watch the little dogs, grinning as they pile together on the blanket in the corner of the surround.

One little fur-ball keeps slipping off the edge of the blanket and whines as she tries to find a place with the others, unsuccessfully. She sits on her rump and looks at Dean, howling a little puppy howl and yip. Dean ain’t moving to solve that little pup’s problem; she needs to learn to solve it herself.. She prances around the puppy pile again, nudging and pawing at the others as they whine or yip or totally ignore her. Finally, she comes over and nips at Cas’s shoe, then crawls over his legs to get to Dean. The whining little pup curls up in Dean’s lap and nuzzles her head between his legs, and Dean smiles up at Cas.

“Well,” Cas says as he stares at the little girl in Dean’s lap.

“Well.” Says Dean.

“What shall we name her?” Cas asks.

“Oh, God. Now, I have to name her.”

Once they’ve picked out the puppy they want, they take her home. Cas pushes Dean to give her a good name.

“She doesn’t seem to like any of the names I’ve tried.” Dean sits on the floor petting his baby girl.

“Lilly,”

“Sassy,”

“Tina… see she ignores them all.” Dean frowns down at the little girl, thinking of all the names he ever heard or read or anything possible. “Cas, I know you think maybe something Russian.” The pup looks up at him. “You can’t have Cas’s name, silly girl.” She tilts her head to the side in a questioning look. “Hmm… K,” the pup tilts her head more, “… KC?” The pup perks up. Dean smiles. “I think her name is Casey.” Dean stands up and calls the pup to join him, “Come on Casey!” The little pup stumbles over her own feet as she pounces along behind him.

* * *

 

They start off early with obedience training; the earliest Casey could start therapy training classes is six months old. Puppy Kindergarten is nothing like Dean expected; there is a lot of hard work for the humans and the dogs. So far, Casey and Dean have a lot of homework. Dean has a regular schedule for feeding and walking Casey; they work on the things they learn in class. Casey catches on quick, she walks next to Dean with no strain on the leash, comes when called, is able to retrieve items they practice with, and she goes to the door and whines to go out when she needs to potty.  Cas is proud of how well Dean has taken to the tasks of training a dog, every new task that Casey learns is praised, and Dean preens with pride. It seems that the routines keep Dean in the right frame of mind, giving him a schedule is always helpful.

They have been in the therapy dog training for two months, and the training they did before has been exceedingly helpful. Dean is amazed at how intelligent the pups are; how quickly they learn all the commands and how intuitive Casey is to Dean’s feelings. The pups were in free time during one of the classes and were allowed to run free in the room; several decided it was time to pounce on each other, nipping and yipping as puppies do. But Casey walked right over to Dean and laid with her head on his foot. Dean hadn’t realized he was bouncing his knee and rocking in his chair until he had to stop to reach down to pet her.

The lead instructor smiled at Dean, “She is very in tune to you already.”

Dean grinned and picked up the little dog, “Hear that girl, you keep doing a good job, and you’ll be top of your class.” Casey licked his cheek and bumped her head against his chin, then squirmed to be put down. Dean watched as his little girl ran off to play with the others. Casey is eight months old, and she is picking up the new training quickly.

Together the class has gone out into public for walks on the streets of downtown Austin around the training center; some pups did better than others. Casey was frightened at first when a bus roared past them at a corner, but the next bus didn’t faze her at all. Not all the puppies have owners, yet, some are being trained as guides for vision impaired, others for people with mobility issues or other particular medical issues. Dean and two others are the only owners who are taking classes with their dogs at this point.

Cas had thought that Dean would want his support during the classes, at least for the first few - until Dean got to know the staff at the training center. But, Dean proved him wrong, deciding that he preferred Cas to drop him off and go take care of other business instead of waiting inside for class to be over. The one-hour class soon turns into an hour and a half because Dean spends time visiting after class is over. Cas experiences a tug of guilt each time he drops off Dean. He feels a bit left out not being involved in the classes with him. Dean is always so excited and full of life when Cas picks him up - the classes must be fun. Cas watches Dean enter the building and realizes that he’s jealous.

“That’s stupid, Cas.” He reprimands himself, “Dean has always had time away from me, the whole time he lived at the Center, I was never jealous of other people spending time with him - was I?” He sits in the cab of the truck and stares at the white letters on the red sign -

austin dog zone

a place for all things dog

Cas starts the truck and pulls away; he’s heading to the market, even though he really doesn’t _need_ anything. He just can’t sit in the truck and wait - that would be too weird.

***

Dean and Casey are having a great time in class. The lesson is on finding and retrieving objects, and the pups think it’s the best game. The only thing that Dean has with him is his wallet, and that quickly turns into a chew toy in Casey’s eyes - because leather and Dean’s scent is the best thing ever - and she whines when he takes it away and doesn’t give it back. Retrieving his wallet will need to be a later lesson, it seems. One of the instructors gives Dean a dog-proof keychain, it’s made of woven paracord and is grey with a light pink trim.

“Pink?” Dean exclaims, looking at the six-inch length of woven cord with an O-ring on one end.

“Grey - with just a hint of pink.” Corrects the instructor.

“Oh, ha ha.” Dean makes a face at the woman.

“Put it in your pocket or rub it on your skin for a minute, that way it will pick up some of your scents. Show Casey what you have and name it for her.”

Dean rolls his eyes and sticks the keychain under his arm, inside his t-shirt, “Think that’s smelly enough for her?” he jokes.

The instructor just shakes her head and works with one of the others in the room.

Dean sits down on the floor with Casey and shows her the item, “That’s a keychain. It’s for my keys. When I need my keys, this is what you’re gonna go get. Okay, little girl.”

Casey sniffs and mouths at the cord, licks the O-ring, and leans in for some scratches from Dean. He keeps telling her about his keys and the keychain while they wait their turn. Dean rubs the corded rope along her head and pets her with it, pokes her and lets her mouth at it and get a good scent of it. Finally, it’s their turn.

“Hide your smelly keychain now, Dean.” The instructor tells him as she takes Casey out of the room for a moment.

Dean wanders around the room for a bit, touching and moving a couple of things before hiding the keychain under some pillows. He doesn’t want it to be too easy for her. He then calls the instructor back into the room.

Casey politely walks with the instructor to Dean, sitting at his feet when they exchange the lead.

“Good girl, Casey.” Dean praises her. “Casey. Go find my keys.” He lets go of her lead, and she stares at him for a moment. “Keys, Casey. Go find my keys.”

Casey huffs a puppy sneeze and starts out into the room, sniffing a trail that matches Dean’s earlier wandering. At one point, after she sniffs at the pillow mound, she comes back to Dean and sits in front of him.

“Caaaseey - Where’s daddy’s keys?” Dean squats to talk to his dog. She looks behind her and back at Dean, tilting her head when he repeats, “Keys.” Dean wonders to himself if this is the equivalent of the dog rolling her eyes at him.

She stands and walks back over to the pile of pillows and burrows in, knocking them all askew, coming out the other side with the keychain in her mouth. She prances back to Dean and sits next to his left foot and drops the keychain on his foot.

“Good girl.” Dean gushes, “What a good girl, Casey.” He sits down on the floor and pets her, giving her a small treat as a reward, along with lots of ear scratches and a kiss between her eyes, then he bumps his forehead to hers. “You’re my perfect little girl, Casey.”

The other dogs each have turns at finding objects, and there are a bit more instructions for the whole class. Dean and Casey enjoy quiet time together as they watch the rest of the class. Petting Casey has quickly become one of Dean’s favorite pastimes.

When class ends, Dean gives Casey lots of cuddles and kisses while he visits with the others before he heads out to meet Cas at the truck. Dean has made friends with the two others who are there with their dogs. Tracy has epilepsy, and David is a veteran and suffers from PTSD.  Much of the training is similar, but Tracy has extra classes for her medical needs.

***

Dean and Casey climb into the cab of the truck, “Cas, you…” he starts.

“Hi, Dean, how…” Cas begins at the same time.

“You first.” Dean agrees and kisses Cas on the cheek.

“I was just gonna ask how class went.”

Dean smiles wide and begins excitedly telling Cas all about the class, he is in one of his hyper moods, and Cas just smiles and listens as Dean talks. “Casey is so smart, Cas. Oh, and look at the new keychain… I guess I need to put the apartment keys on here, oh and the studio and…” He pulls the grey and pink webbed cord from his pocket, “I wasn’t sure about the pink at first, but Casey loves it. She found it like a pro - oh, man and then when we took a potty break…” Dean continues to gush about the class while he pets Casey on the head and scratches behind her ears, not leaving out any details.

Cas parks in Harvelle’s lot and fondly watches and listens to Dean relive the morning's events. He can’t help but smile; Dean is so happy - it’s contagious. The uneasy jealous feeling that Cas had when he dropped Dean off earlier is now forgotten, and he is feeling the joy of Dean’s experience as though he was there with him.

When Dean finally stops talking, he blinks at Cas and looks around. “Ooh, yummy, Harvelle’s! I love you, Cas! You always know just what I need.” He slides across the seat and cradles Cas’s cheek in his hand, “You’re the sweetest, kindest man I’ve ever met.” Dean takes Cas’s face in his hands and gives him a firm yet chaste kiss, then nudges Cas to open the door and get out, “So, what did you do while I was at doggy school?”

Cas takes Dean’s hand as they walk to the door of the restaurant, “Not much. Went to the market, picked up a few things we were low on… I really just wandered around for most of the time, looking at the different stalls.” Cas in no way wants to let Dean know that he was feeling low and jealous of Dean’s time with the people at the school. Dean is in a wonderful mood and has had a great morning, Cas loves to see Dean in such good spirits.

They enter the building and greet a few of the usuals, and wave at Ellen; they are seated and give their order - they don’t even need menus. Ellen comes over to say hello and brings a bowl of water and an extra bowl for food for Casey. Dean has a little zip-lock bag with her food in his backpack and fills her bowl. When she has finished eating, she lays next to Dean’s chair.

“Cas, you know it’s not that I don’t want you to be a part of Casey’s training, right?”

Cas tries to give a supportive smile and nods, “Yeah, sure Babe. This is your thing.”

Dean sighs, “Cas,” He reaches across the table and stops Cas from fussing with his silverware, taking Cas’s hand in his, “Sweetheart, I want you to be a part of everything I do. The thing is that Casey needed time to adjust to me and my issues, my needs. This training is different from typical behavioral training that we did in the puppy kindergarten. She is learning what to do if I’m in distress. She is the smartest dog in the class, Cas. The instructor said that she is doing so well that you can start coming to classes next month if you want.”

“Yeah?” Cas asks; a small smile graces his lips and a glint sparkles in his eyes.

“Yeah.” Dean kisses Cas’s palm just as the waitress brings their meals. Dean drops Cas’s hand and grabs his burger, taking a big bite and hums in delight, “Ohmygodsogood.” He mumbles around a mouthful of food, shoving in a fry along with the partially masticated burger.

“Ehw, Babe, I don’t need to see all that. Shut that pie-hole.”

“Mmm, pie?”

“Bottomless pit.”

“Snob.”

“SLOB.”

“Dork.”

“Eat your food, Princess.”

Dean barks out a laugh, knowing the game is over. They both enjoy their burgers, and they each get a slice of pie for dessert.

* * *

 

The following month, Cas finally gets to go to class with Dean. For most of the class, he watches as the others work with the dogs. Dean has Cas hide his keychain to have Casey go find it - of course, she finds it right away, this thrills Cas, and he praises her and gives her a treat.

At one point in class, the instructor tells Dean to lay on the floor. He’s done this before, but Cas has never experienced it, so it’s hard for Dean not to be excited. Dean lays on the floor and is unresponsive to Casey’s attention. She whimpers, licks, and gently paws at him - he ignores it all, laying still with his eyes closed. Casey rears up and lands her front paws against his neck and yowls, but Dean continues to ignore her. She lays down and nuzzles her nose against his chest and huffs, nudging him. Suddenly, she jumps up and runs over to Cas, growling and sneezing doggy huffs at him as she prances around his feet to get his attention. She barks and bites his pants, pulling at him until he moves toward Dean. She yips and leads the way, running back and forth checking on Dean and hurrying Cas. When Cas kneels beside Dean, Casey lays down against Dean’s legs with her head on his thigh and watches Cas rouse Dean. The exercise is over when Dean sits up and praises Casey. Cas gives her a treat and scratches behind her ears.

They all play a few retrieve and return games with the dogs, to keep ingraining the training as well as allowing them some fun time with lots of praise and treats.

All too soon, class ends, and Cas is just as sad to for it to be over as Dean. Cas is thrilled to be able to attend the classes, although he knows that it is still important for Dean to attend many of the classes without him, that he is a caregiver and has slightly different training obligations.

* * *

 

Casey runs around the pool, excitedly sniffing at everything. She pees here and there, marking the yard as her own.

“Dean, should I get a fence?” Cas asks as they watch the dog sniff the perimeter of the back yard, along the tree line and against the big house. “Casey is getting big, and if we had a fence, she could spend time out in the yard without one of us supervising.”

“Well, most of the backyard has a fence, back there past the trees” Dean points along the edge of the yard,  “- against the neighbor’s yards. But, we may need to close the gaps along the front part of the yard. She could wander right out the driveway.”

“True, hmm, I’ll call in the morning. I think if we put a fence up there from that edge to the corner of the house and a line on the other side from the house to the garage, then fill in any other gaps we find, we should be good.” Cas points along the side of the house where there is no fence between his and the neighbor’s houses, then looks from the opposite side of the house to the garage as he motions where the rest of the fence should go.

Cas squats down to greet Casey when she comes running over, “What do you think, girl? You want a nice fence to keep you safe?”

Casey harruffs at him.

“I think she agrees!” Dean laughs. “Hey let’s get our trunks and let her get in the pool with us.”

They splash and swim, tossing a ball for Casey to retrieve.

“She’s definitely true to her breed.”  Cas chuckles when the dog tires of playing and lays on the top step with her head on the patio, relaxing in the shallow water.

“Now that Casey is resting…,” Dean sidles up against Cas in the waist deep water.

“Mmm, you’re not tired from chasing her all over the yard?” Cas teases.

Dean kisses Cas’s shoulder and rests his hands-on Cas’s hips, sliding them to his lower back as he leans against him. Cas lets his head fall back, giving Dean more access.

“Guess that’s a no to being tired,” Cas mumbles and tucks his chin down to kiss dean on the lips.

They casually make out, hands unhurriedly petting each other. No rush or extreme sense of need, just enjoying each other’s body.

Moments later, Cas feels cool water dripping on his shoulder and hot breath on his ear - and it can’t be Dean, because Dean is busy sucking a hickey on the opposite side of his neck.

“Dammit, Casey. You’re disturbing a real good thing here.” He grouses and pushes her back, “Go lay down.”

She lays right beside them.

“Dean, she’s watching us.”

“So,” Dean says between kisses as he works his way back up Cas’s neck.

“Not just looking - she’s really watching, intently.”

“You shy all of a sudden?” Dean shoves his hand down Cas’s swim trunks.

Cas moans at the touch, “Geez, Baby. It’s … it's like having a kid watching or something.”

Dean untangles from Cas and steps back. “Cas, she’s here to stay. You plan on giving up sex ‘cuz of a dog?”

Casey perks up her head and eyes Dean.

“Dammit, Cas,” Dean grumbles and climbs out of the pool, stomping over to a lounge chair and sits heavily, slumping into a pout, arms crossed over his chest and staring off in the distance - not looking at Cas. Dean is a pro at pouting.

Cas grits his teeth, knowing that Dean is pushing for a fight because he suddenly isn’t getting what he wants. ‘ _Brat_.’ He rubs Casey’s head, “Casey, go drip all over him, cool off that temper of his.” He scratches her head and climbs out of the pool to go sit by Dean.

“You hungry?” Cas asks, and that gets the attention of Dean and Casey, both of them perk up and look over at Cas, “Yeah, thought so. You go feed Casey, and I’ll order something.” Cas knows that much of the time Dean’s attitude is tied closely to his stomach, a hungry Dean is a grumpy Dean. That’s why on any outing they have, Cas packs snack bars and water; he also makes sure Dean has some bars in his own backpack.

After lunch, they all go in for an afternoon rest. Casey obediently lays on her bed in the corner of the room. Dean and Cas cuddle on the bed. Cas attempts to restart where they were interrupted earlier, but Dean is more tired than he wants to admit and he falls asleep.

Cas glares down at the dog, “Thanks for nothin’. You wore him out.”


	2. Chapter 2

Casey goes everywhere with Dean. Not that Dean is going many places, yet. But he does have a bus pass and the credit card that Cas gave him. He still hasn’t gone anywhere without Cas. 

Thanks to Cas, Dean knows how to order a car through the Lyft app, and he knows the address for Gabe’s office, Harvelle’s, and the Center. Cas has been working with Dean to order a car that will take him anywhere he wants, even if it's just around the block. He needs to be more self-reliant, and this is a big step. Dean has gotten as far as getting a car and meeting the driver twice. Both times he got too nervous and backed out, and Cas paid the driver for his trouble. Today, the plan is for Dean to go buy dog food.

“Babe, you have your phone and can text or call me at any time. Besides, you and Casey need to have some fun; you know how much she loves the pet store. I’ll be here painting, with my music low and my phone notifications on loud.”

Dean frowns but knows Cas is right; he needs to get past this first step. He wants to argue and fuss, but he simply huffs and looks from Cas to Casey.

“You wanna do this today? You wanna go to the pet store?”

Casey perks up her ears,  _ go _ is one of her favorite words.

“Fine. Two against one. Casey, get my keys.” Dean likes to keep her in practice and fetching things is always a good task. Dean gets his wallet and phone and orders a car on the app.

“Fifteen minutes,” He updates Cas on the arrival time for the car. Dean sits on the couch and watches Cas as he works on a painting. Dean’s fine for the first ten minutes, then he begins to fidget and bite his nails. He huffs out a big breath and adjusts his position.

Casey comes over and puts her head on his knee and whines. That’s her cue for Dean to stop fidgeting and pay attention to her. So, Dean does. He pets her and scratches behind her ears.

“Thanks, baby girl. Daddy is kinda nervous, huh.”

Cas looks over his shoulder at the two of them, feeling proud of them both. He’s also watching the time but waits for Dean to announce his countdown.

“Three minutes, Cas. Think we need to head up front?”

“What do you think, Babe?”

Dean rolls his eyes at the psychology being thrown at him. “Yes, Cas, I think we should.”

“Give me a kiss then.” Cas smiles. Dean does, then it dawns on him.

“You’re not walking up with me?”

“Nope. I know you won’t get lost between here and the end of the driveway,” He smirks, “You can do this. Look, Casey’s ready.”

Casey is sitting by the door with her leash in her mouth and Dean’s keys at her feet. Dean had already put on her harness and vest, and she knows that means they’re leaving the yard.

“Just look at those big brown eyes, you can’t disappoint her.” Cas croons, his arms still around Dean’s waist. He lets go and swats Dean’s ass. “Now, don’t keep your driver waiting. Your baby girl needs food, and you need to do this.”

“Ya know, you’re kinda bossy sometimes.” Dean grins and gives Cas a kiss on the tip of his nose.

“I know, but you love me anyway.”

“Yeah, I do.” Dean smiles a goofy smile, “Okay, then. We’re outta here. Let’s do this Casey.” Dean attaches her lead to her harness, and they head up to the driveway to meet their car.  He takes a look back toward the pool house as the car pulls up; he doesn’t see Cas. Casey gives a tug on the lead, “Okay girl; I’m coming.”

Dean introduces himself and Casey to the driver. The ride is unadventurous, and Dean decides that he has made a big deal over nothing, and sits back and enjoys the ride to town. He’s been shopping lots of times with Cas, the only difference this time is no Cas.  He gets out of the car at the pet store and turns to head inside.

“Hey, Dean!” the driver calls, “Your wallet! It must have fallen out of your pocket or something.” The driver smiles and hands Dean his wallet.

“Oh, shit, that would have totally sucked to get into the store without my wallet. Thanks, man.” Dean accepts his wallet and turns back toward the store.

“Excuse me,” Dean greets the first employee he sees, “where’s your restroom?”

The employee points him in the direction of the men’s room.

Dean can feel the earthquake rumbling inside his chest, his hands are shaking, and his breathing is too fast. He knows the signs of a panic attack. Dean walks quickly to the restroom, with Casey in tow. Once inside, he checks that he’s alone. He crouches down and presses his face against Casey’s side. He’s really shaking now, his eyes burn, and his throat is tight, he feels tears well up in his eyes.

“Dammit. Dammit, dammit. Casey, I can’t do this. I already fucked up. I nearly lost my wallet.” Casey whines and places her head on his shoulder. “Maybe Cas will come get me.” Dean wipes his eyes on his sleeve and looks at his dog. He doesn’t even care that he is now sitting on the floor of a public restroom, hugging his dog. “Casey. Girl, what do I do?”

Casey sniffs his face and then bumps her head against his chin and lets him pet her as long as he needs.

Dean is still sitting on the floor petting her when a young boy, about ten years old, comes into the bathroom.

“Hey. Are you okay? Did you get lost? I got lost from my mom once, and I was scared. You look scared. It’s okay. The people that work here are nice and can help. They helped me; maybe they can help you. I like your dog; she’s pretty.”

Dean huffs out a watery laugh. “Thanks. I, uh, I did get scared. But, that’s why I have my girl, Casey, here. She helps me when I get upset or scared. She’s a special girl. I think I’m okay now. Thank you for being brave and talking to me. You helped me, too.”

“You’re welcome.” The kid says and heads into a stall.

Dean washes his hands and face and then goes back out to the store. He  _ can  _ do this. Once he feels a bit more settled, he texts Cas.

Dean> I got freaked out, but I’m okay now.

Cas> Are you sure?

Dean> Yeah. Casey and a nice kid helped me out. Tell you more later. 

Cas> Do you need me to come get you?

Dean> No. I can do this.

Cas> :) <3 u so much

Dean> me too <3   :)

Dean heads up to the front of the store and gets a shopping cart. He takes out one of the snack bars that Cas put in his backpack (Cas’s voice in his head telling him to eat something so he will feel better) and eats it while he walks to the dog food aisle. He grabs Casey’s food; then they head to the toy aisle. 

“You’re such a good girl, Casey. You deserve a new toy. Pick anything you want, baby girl.”

They hang out in the toy aisle while Casey sniffs and checks out the toys. She comes away with a crinkly, flat, squirrel looking thing that has a squeaker in its foot. She carries the weird squirrel throughout the store while Dean looks at fish, and snakes, and absolutely skips the spiders to look at the pretty, colorful birds.

About fifteen minutes before he’s ready to leave, Dean remembers to orders a car. He gets in line and finally puts his purchases on the counter.

“Casey, put your baby up here.” Dean pats the counter, and Casey jumps up with her front paws and lays the toy on the counter. The lady rings it up, removes the tags, and hands it back to her. Casey sits next to Dean with her baby in her mouth.

“She is so well behaved. Oh, I see she is a service dog. She’s beautiful. May I give her a treat?” The cashier gushes.

“Sure, if you don’t mind me giving it to her,” Dean replies.

The Cashier hands him a small milk bone, and he turns to Casey.

“Here you go, Casey. For being such a wonderful good girl.”

Casey drops her toy and harruffs, then takes the treat.

“Do you want me to carry this?” Dean asks her as he picks up the toy. Casey sits up and raises one paw, gently pawing at the toy and mouthing at it. “Okay, girl. You can carry it.” Dean bids the cashier goodbye, and they go outside to meet their driver.

His next stop is to get himself some food. The driver drops them off in front of Harvelle’s. Dean grabs his packages and he and Casey go inside where they’re greeted by Ellen.

“Dean! Oh, and Casey! My goodness, how she’s grown.” Ellen squats down and gives Casey scratches and a kiss to her head (Which Dean allows because Ellen is practically family). “Where’s Cas?”

“It’s just me and my girl today. Cas is at the house.”

“Well, look at you.” Ellen smiles and gives Dean a pat on the arm, “Go take a seat and I’ll get Casey some water and a bowl for food.” Ellen heads to the kitchen, coming back a few moments later with two bowls. She kneels down and places them slightly under the table, so Casey can eat and drink. “Your food will be right out, Dean.”

Dean opens the corner of the dog food and pours out enough for Casey to have a small meal. After she eats, she lays under his chair while he eats.

Dean> Hey Cas, me and Casey are at Harvelle’s - want me to bring you something?

Cas> Sure, you know what I like

Dean> Yeah, but do you want some food? :)

Cas> oh haha funny man

Cas> Yes I want some food

Cas> Then you can give me what I really like…. Later

Dean> You’re gonna make me choke on my food LOL

Cas> I’ll make you choke on something else! >:P

Dean> I just got whacked by Ellen for YOUR text!

Cas> Why is she reading my texts?

Dean> BC She thinks we’re 12!

Dean> OUCH! Another whack!

Cas> LOL

Cas> Eat your lunch and come home - I wanna hear all about your outing <3

***

Dean and Casey arrive safely back home, and Cas is waiting in a lounge chair by the pool. (Trying to act calm, he doesn’t want Dean do know that he’s been worried about him.)

Casey heads straight over to her water dish and laps up a good drink, then picks up her new toy and goes inside through the open French doors and lays on her bed by the couch.

“You don’t know how hard it was for me not to come running when you texted me this morning. God, I’m glad you’re home and okay.” Cas takes one of the bags and leads Dean inside. They barely get the things put down, and Cas takes Dean’s face in his hands, staring him down, taking in every inch of his face and finally landing on his eyes. He brings Dean into a tight hug. “I’m so proud of you.” He kisses Dean on the corner of his mouth, then the other side, then fully on the lips.

“You wouldn’t be if you saw me in the bathroom at the pet store.” Dean pulls away and hops up on the counter near the sink.

“Even more so, Baby. You got through all that by yourself. Well, with Casey’s assistance. Just as it should be. You proved that you  _ can  _ go out and do things on your own.”

“Maybe. But, I don’t wanna do it again for a few days.” Dean leans forward and rests his head on Cas’s shoulder, “That took a lot outta me.”

“It’s okay, Baby. I understand. It actually took a lot outta me, too. I couldn’t even paint after you left. I wanted so much to be out there with you.”

“Really? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“You didn’t, not really. I was already working myself up and would have been worried no matter how your day went.” Cas admits, “I just didn’t want you to know I was freaking out a bit, too. Baby, I want you to heal completely and have a full life. But, sometimes…” Cas looks down at his hands, pausing, finding it hard to say the words out loud,  “I'm afraid… afraid that you will outgrow me and decide to move on with your own life.”

Dean slides down off the counter and looks Cas in the eye. “Cas, there is nothing that will make me want to leave you. You’d have to lock me up to keep me away from you. And even then, I’d never stop loving you.” He cradles Cas’s face in his hands; Cas’s eyes are red with the threat of tears. “I’ve told you, and I’ll say it again. You’re it for me. You’re my Person, now and forever.”

Cas takes a shaky breath and kisses Dean. He runs his hands under Dean’s shirt and around to his back, pulling him closer. They pause long enough for Cas to pull Dean’s shirt off, then Cas is on him again.

“I want you. Now.” Cas growls against Dean’s skin. “Bedroom.”

“What about your lunch?”

“Put it in the fridge. Then get naked.”

Dean grabs the bag and puts it into the mini-fridge and almost runs to the bedroom. Casey jumps up and follows.

“No, girl, you stay out here,” Dean orders her to her bed in the studio.

Cas closes the bedroom door and gets the lube from the bedside table, tossing it on the bed.

“Have I told you today how much I love you?”

Dean nods and smiles.

“Have I told you today how much I love your body?”

Dean shakes his head and reaches for Cas.

Cas knee walks across the bed and kisses Dean; it’s filthy and horny and all manner of hot.

Cas leans down and kisses along the scarred lines on Dean’s thighs until he reaches his hips where he sucks bright red marks on each hip bone. He nips and kisses his way up to deans nipples, sucking first the right one until it's hard and tender, then he pinches it while he sucks Dean’s left nipple. Cas kisses each scar in his path, those Dean made himself and those given by others, loving all of Dean, accepting him marks and all. 

Dean writhes under Cas’s minstrations. Breathing hard and cursing when Cas bites down on his sensitive skin. 

Cas licks a line up Dean’s neck and blows cool air, causing Dean to shiver. Dean can’t stand it and captures Cas’s lips with is own, slipping his tongue past Cas’s teeth and licks Cas’s tongue and mouth. Cas wraps his hand around both their hard cocks, squeezing gently as he jacks them both together. The motion has them both breathing sharp intakes before continuing the wet, sloppy kiss. Dean is steadily moaning into Cas’s mouth. 

Dean releases Cas’s mouth and kisses along his jaw and down his neck, biting and sucking a mark where his neck meets his shoulder. Cas groans and sits up, grabbing the lube, popping the cap and coating his hand, then covering his hard cock with a thick coating of the stuff. 

“Turn over.”  

Dean carefully rolls between Cas’s legs, rutting into the mattress as Cas rubs his slick hand between his ass cheeks. Cas adjusts their position and spreads Dean’s legs. Cas continues to lube Dean’s hole and leans down, first kissing then biting each of Dean’s firm butt cheeks.

“Up on your knees, I’m gonna fuck your beautiful ass good, Baby.”  

Dean gets up on his knees, keeping his chest on the mattress; his hands gripping the headboard. He nods and grunts his answer. 

Cas pushes against his tight hole until the tip of his cock breaches the ring of muscle. 

“AH, oh God, Cas!” Dean moans.

Cas slowly pushes in a little more, loving the sounds coming from Dean as he pushes back against Cas. Dean hisses when Cas pulls out, adds more lube and pushes in deeper. 

“Oh, baby, so tight, so umf good.” Cas works in and out until he is fully inside Dean. He pauses, leaning forward, kissing Dean between his shoulder blades; letting Dean catch his breath and get used to the stretch.

“You ready, Baby?”

Dean nods and grunts, “‘Msoready.”

Cas pulls most of the way out then thrusts back in, moaning at the feeling of Dean’s body swallowing him. He picks up speed and fucks into Dean; finding just the right angle to rub against his prostate with each movement.

Dean is shaking and pushing back with each thrust. He’s lost his ability to form words as Cas fucks him fast and hard, pushing out pornographic sounds after sound. If Dean had the use of half his brain, he would deny the slutty sounds he is currently making. 

Cas reaches around and wraps his lube slick hand around Dean’s angry, hot cock. Dean bucks up at the touch, his dick so hard it hurt just enough to make him cry out in ecstasy. Cas begins stroking him with every thrust into him. 

“God, Dean, Baby, so close. You gonna cum for me?”

Dean rocks back and forth onto Cas’s cock and into his hand. Everything is hot and tight and hard; he’s so sensitive he swears he can feel every vain on Cas’s dick. He wants it to last forever but he’s so close he wants to cum hard. Dean plunges his hips forward into Cas’s fist, tightening his ass around Cas’s cock; spurting cum all over the sheets. His head spins and he squeezes his eyes shut, holding his breath as he paints the bed with wet sticky stripes. 

“Ah, fuck, Dean,” Cas growls as he comes deep inside Dean. Dean finally loosens and Cas shoots more cum, causing him to shiver all over. He leans against Dean’s ass and lets out a big sigh, panting as he tries to catch his breath. He finally pulls out and flops on the bed next to Dean, pulling him over on his side so that he doesn’t fall into his own jizz. 

They’re both breathing heavily as they come down from the sex high. 

“I love you so much”

“Muv you too.” Dean mumbles into the pillow. 


	3. Chapter 3

Thursday morning, Cas wakes early. Casey is sitting next to Dean’s side of the bed. Cas knows she’s about to wake Dean to let her out. Just as Cas heads to the bathroom, Casey jumps up on the bed and licks Dean’s face. 

“Okay, girl, okay.” Dean grumbles and pushes Casey off him. He gets up and lets her out out into the yard, leaving the door slightly open so that she can get back in when she’s done. 

Cas is brushing his teeth when Dean gets to the bathroom. 

“It’s Thursday, Dean.” 

“Mkay,” Dean mumbles as he starts the shower. Thursday is therapy day -- they will have to go to the Center later this morning. Therapy is part of the usual weekly routine. Dean has an individual session, then they have a joint session. 

“Hey, Baby,” Cas speaks up so Dean can hear over the shower, “Are you going to do like we talked about?”

The discussion this week has been for Dean to go to the Center first, on his own, then Cas will come for the joint session and they will leave together. The idea is to help Dean with his ability to go out on his own, working on his independence and self-reliance. He hasn’t been out again since the Pet Store, and that was on Sunday. 

“Will you make some bacon?” Dean asks from the shower.

Cas knows it's a small bribe that Dean is trying to work. The  _ I’ll do it if _ doesn’t have to be said, Cas knows Dean too well. 

“Sure. You gonna feed Casey here or up in the kitchen?”

“Kitchen.”

“Okay. I’ll be up at the house then.” Cas goes up to the house to prepare breakfast. Casey is still out in the yard, watching a squirrel flitting around in one of the trees. Cas is glad they got the fence and closed off the yard, now Casey is safe to go out into the yard alone. 

Dean finishes his shower and gets dressed; he grabs a scoop of Casey’s food to take with him. He whistles and Casey follows him into the big house kitchen.

Gabe is in the kitchen talking to Cas when Dean arrives.

“Hey, Dean-o. I hear you’re off on another adventure this morning. You sure you don’t want to ride in with me? I’ll be heading in to the office in a little bit.”

“No thanks, Gabe. I’d rather take my chances with a Lyft driver.” Dean counters as he grabs the waffles from the freezer.

“Be that way.” Gab sasses.

“Besides, where would Casey sit in your car? You don’t have a back seat.”

“You’ve got a valid point there my friend.” Gabe looks at the dog, who’s chomping down her breakfast, “And, I don’t need my car smelling like dog. Smelling like Dean is bad enough.” Gabe laughs and winks at Dean. Dean knows he’s teasing him and flips him off. 

Dean’s waffles pop in the toaster and he grabs the syrup and sits next to Cas, picking up a handful of bacon from the plate on the table, and he douses his food with sweet, sticky syrup and takes a big bite of waffles, grinning at Cas. 

Cas knows what’s about to happen and just rolls his eyes when dean leans close and gives him a big warm, syrupy sweet kiss. Cas wipes his mouth, “You’re so gross.” He can’t help laughing, looking at the happy smile on Dean’s face. 

“Cas, you know, if I ride in with you we’ll have time to be  _ gross _ together before we leave for the Center.” Dean bats his eyelashes and makes kissy faces at Cas. 

Cas barks out a laugh, “Eat your breakfast, silly.”

The conversation moves to Deans impending ride to the Center and how he’s made the trip often enough that the vehicle and driver shouldn’t make any difference. 

“I know, I know. Ya’ll keep saying that there’s nothing to worry about. All I have to do is sit back and enjoy the ride. As if I ever do that. I worry about everything all the time.”

“Wait, even when you’re with me?” Cas asks.

“No offense, Cas. I feel safe with you, just everything around us is nerve racking. You don’t have control over the other drivers.” 

“Awe, Baby.” Cas embraces Dean,  he doesn’t know what else to say so he kisses him. 

“I’m still right here.” Gabe reminds them. “Dean-o, you have to get past this to move onto the next step. I know you want to get to the point where you can actually drive yourself. Am I right?”

“Hell yeah, I do. I’ve always wanted a car of my own, something cool. I know how to drive. I used to steal cars and go for joy rides back in Kansas. Plus, I used to drive the truck and tractors some back on the Ranch. I’ve just never driven  _ legally  _ on the street.”

Gabe laughs, “I can just imagine mini-Dean-o boostin’ cars. Oh my God!”

“Shut up, asshat.” Dean grumbles. “Cas, I think I’ll be okay today. It's just a straight shot from here to the Center after all.”

“That’s right, Babe, you’ll do fine.”

Dean is feeling confident for today’s ride to the Center. Last time it went mostly well, overall his outing had been good. This time he is only going from home to the Center, that’s not too bad. He puts Casey’s harness and vest on her and grabs his keys, wallet, and phone. His car is due any minute, now. 

Cas walks him up to the driveway and kisses him goodbye. “I’ll see you in about two hours. You have plenty of time to get there, and will probably be early.”

“I want to get there early so Casey can fo pee before we go inside, and so we can say hi to a few people before my session.” 

“Well, you can always visit after our session if you want.”

“I know, I know.” Dean rolls his eyes, he wants to show off a little without Cas there. “Looks like my car’s comin’.” Sure enough, a car pulls into the driveway. “Love you, see you in a bit.” Dean bravely walks to the car and gets in. He and Casey can do this. 

Cas smiles and waves. He’s so proud of Dean for doing this.

***

Twenty minutes into the forty-five minute drive, they are stopped in traffic. An ambulance slowly makes its way through the cars, horn, lights, and siren blaring. 

“What’s going on?”

“Looks like there’s a wreck up ahead, we may be stuck for a few minutes; until the cops open a lane.” The driver answers, showing Dean the map app with the traffic information. 

“No, that’s bad.” Dean swivels and looks behind and around the car. They are in bumper to bumper traffic. “Is there any way to turn around or get out of this?” Dean can feel the panic of being trapped and the fear of being late starting to bubble up inside him. 

“Sorry, man. Can’t. There’s no off ramp here. It shouldn’t be too long. I can just see the emergency vehicles up there. It's not far ahead.”

“Can you roll down the windows, please?” Dean pleads, he can hear the panic in his own voice and tries to stamp it down. “I need air.” Dean unbuckles his seatbelt and turns to look at Casey in the back seat. She is on high alert and watching his every move. 

“I’m, I’m gonna,” Dean points to the back seat, “need more room, need my dog.” His hand is shaking as he attempts to open the door. “Dude, please, unlock!” He nearly yells, only barely keeping from crying when he can’t open the door. “I need to get out. I’ll get in the back with Casey. Please!” 

The driver puts the car in park and allows Dean to get out, watching with concern as Dean shakes out his hands and paces for a moment, looking around as though he’s looking for an escape route. Finally Dean gets into the back seat. 

Casey immediately puts her head in his lap and nuzzles his hand. He pets her but he is still shaking and breathing too fast. 

“Fuck. I can’t do this.”

“Come on, man. It's just some traffic. Chill.” 

“You don’t understand! Fuck!” Dean looks at the time on his phone, “Fuck! It's been ten minutes!”

“Hey, um, Dean, dude. Look, you’re gonna be okay. You still got plenty of time.” 

Dean bounces his leg and chews on his cuticles. His mind is racing with all the “what if’s” -  _ ‘If he’s late the first time he goes to therapy alone, will they take away his privilege?’ ‘Will Cas be ashamed of him?’ ‘This driver hates him.’ ‘He shouldn’t be allowed out alone.’ _

“No. I’m gonna be late!” Dean doesn’t mean to shout at the guy. He’s not blaming the driver. No, somehow this is all Dean’s fault. 

“Dude, seriously, chill.” The driver replies angrily.

“I’m sorry, sorry.” Dean presses the heels of his hands against his eyes, “I’m sorry.” He repeats, near tears. 

Casey sits up and paws at Dean. She nips his shirt sleeve and pulls at him. She pulls him until he lays down on the seat. Then she curls up against his chest and rests her head on his neck. She is warm and her heartbeat is steady against Dean, her breath is warm on his skin. Dean wraps an arm around her and hides his face in her fur, breathing in her warmth and the apple scent of her shampoo. Within a couple of minutes he has stopped shaking and is breathing normally. He doesn’t even realize when the car starts to move.

Ten minutes down the road, the driver dares to speak again, “Dean? Are you okay?”

Dean peeks out from under his dog. Looking up, out the side window, he sees that they are moving at regular speed. He slowly sits up and wipes his face on the inside hem of his t-shirt. 

“Sorry.” He apologizes again. 

“It’s okay. You just freaked out and kinda freaked me out a little. We’re almost there, about another ten minutes or so. Once we got past the accident, traffic was flying at usual speed. Looks like you’ll be about five minutes early. Sorry I wasn’t able to get you there any earlier.” 

“It, um, not,” Dean clears his throat and tries to make his words work after his panic attack, it's hard to talk. “Not your fault. Sorry, um, scared ya an’ shit.”

“I have to admit, you’ve been one of the most interesting fairs I’ve driven.” The driver smiles at Dean in the rearview mirror.

They pull into the long, curved drive that leads to the front of the Center. Dean watches as the trees pass by and he feels the usual queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. Even after all this time he has a certain dislike for returning to this place after being incarcerated here for eighteen months. This time it feels even worse because Cas isn’t in the car. Cas is a reminder that the visit is a short, temporary one, and that they will be leaving together. He knows Cas is going to join him soon, he just feels lonely right now and really misses Cas. He also feels like he’s going to puke if he doesn’t get out of this car soon. 

Once Dean checks in, he runs to the bathroom and empties the contents of his stomach, finally crying as he sits on the floor next to the toilet. He flushes and looks at Casey.

“I’m such a failure.”

He finally gets up and washes his hands and face, and rinses his mouth. Taking Casey by the leash, he heads up to Eleanors’ office. 

Dean’s session with Eleanor is tear filled as he shares his two outing experiences and how he had a panic attack both times. 

“Dean, you may have had a momentary lapse and panicked, but you ultimately succeeded in both outings. You completed your shopping trip. And look, you’re here today. Neither were failures. Both were learning experiences.” She hands him a sheet of paper, “I want you to write down the first thought you had during the traffic jam.”

If I’m late they won’t trust me to travel alone and will take that away from me.

“Okay, now, do you think that’s a truthful statement?”

“Um, I’m not sure.” Dean fidgets with the pen in his hand.

“Alright, put it this way, was I upset when you arrived?”

“No,”

“So, what could you have done instead of getting so worked up? Write it down for me.”

If I’m running late - 

“Right, Dean. What can you do if you’re running late to a session with me?”

If I’m running late - text Eleanor and let her know.

Dean looks up, questioningly. 

“Exactly. If you let me know that you’re stuck in traffic, I’ll understand why you may be running late. Now, when you felt scared what did you do?”

Dean tells Eleanor everything that happened on the ride. 

“Casey did her job well, Dean. Once you allowed her, she helped you calm down. That’s why you have her. She is in tune to you and you need to trust her.”

“I do. She’s great.” Dean looks proudly at his dog. 

They finish the session and she gives him homework of walking Casey: First, to learn new routes in the neighborhood around the house. Then, to advance and walk around the downtown area near Gabe’s office. Each week he needs to report in on his progress. 

Cas is sitting in the outer office reading a magazine when Dean opens the door.

“Cas!” Dean smiles.

“Hey, Babe.” Cas puts down the book and stands to hug Dean. “Guess you made it here fine since you didn’t call or text me.” Cas grins.

“Oh, that’s the other thing I shoulda done, huh.” Dean looks sheepishly to Eleanor. 

Cas holds Dean’s hand and gives it a little squeeze as they enter her office. Cas sits on the couch and Dean sits beside him, feeling like he needs the closeness. Cas gives him a supportive smile before they start by discussing Dean’s trip to the Center


	4. Chapter 4

Time passes quickly, as it tends to do when you’re busy with living life. 

By Autumn, Dean has mastered getting a car to take him to therapy each week as well as for short shopping trips, or to go spend a few hours at Gabe’s office. He has been doing some administrative work and learning computer skills from Charlie. 

Dean and Casey are continuing their walks, most days they stay in the neighborhood near the house, but once a week they stroll through the downtown district near the office. Cas joins them for most of the walks, but as he prefers to run, he usually leaves them behind and meets them back at the house. Although, Dean has started to run with him a couple of days a week. 

Halloween rolls around and they decide to stay home and pass out candy to the neighborhood kids. Dean dresses up like Captain America and Cas as the Winter Soldier, even Casey gets a costume. Dean found a bumble bee dog outfit that is perfect for her. 

The next morning, Cas takes Dean up to his house on Buchanan Lake. There is no way Cas is going to let Dean be alone the next few days. They spend a full week up at the lake house. Dean has his first boat ride and loves it. They spend most of their time fishing, boating, and lounging on the dock.

During the time at the lake, Dean is relaxed and in a great mood. The only time he experiences any anxiety is the first couple of nights, and that’s typical for him being in a new place. 

The first day at the lake house, Dean wondered around the house touching things and looking in every room, he took a nap on the bed that he and Cas would share - Casey right there, snuggled against him while he slept. That first night, he had a hard time sleeping and Cas sat up with him and held him while he rocked and Cas hummed until Dean finally fell asleep. 

The second day at the lake they took out the boat and Dean had a wonderful time, Cas even let him drive the boat. They spent hours out on the water fishing and just relaxing as the boat rocked gently. At lunch, they came in to dock the boat and walked to the cafe nearby. Casey wanted to chase the geese but Dean had her on her leash and she gave up easily and just watched the big birds as Dean and Cas ate their lunch. After stopping at the house to feed Casey, they went back out on the boat for a little while longer to see if they could catch any more fish. Dean loved being out on the boat. After an hour of not catching any fish, they came back in and docked the boat. They took in their things and that evening, after a dinner of the few fish they did catch that morning, they sat out on the dock to watch the sunset. Dean and Cas were both so exhausted from the long day that they had no trouble falling asleep. 

Everything was fine until about two am when Dean woke Cas up, Dean was fighting and calling out, he was having a nightmare. Casey jumped up on the bed and barked then laid against Dean, nuzzling at his arm. Cas quickly got some water and gently woke Dean and helped him cool off and calm down from the dream. Dean petted Casey while he curled into Cas’s arms. It didn’t take him long to fall back asleep.

Dean walks into the kitchen and notices the calendar on the wall next to the refrigerator, he stops and stares, counting on his fingers to make sure of the date. How did that happen? How did he completely miss a day. Cas had him out in the boat all day and he had been having fun fishing and goofing off that he never once thought about what the date was. ‘ _ Dammit Cas, he tricked me _ .’ Dean thought, “He did that on purpose.” Dean growled,  “Wait, he did that on  _ purpose _ .” Dean looks down at his arms, at all the scars from years of cutting, he wraps his arms around his middle and can feel the scars through his t-shirt. He knows where each scar is and when he made them. Today he doesn’t have any new cuts. He isn’t sure how to feel about that. This is the first time he can ever remember not cutting himself on the anniversary of his parents’ death. 

He slides down the wall and wraps his arms around his knees, and laying his cheek on his knee, he looks out the window at Cas who is sitting on the deck with Casey by his side. 

Cas says something and Casey gets up and comes inside finding Dean curled on the kitchen floor crying. She whines and sits close to him, pressing against him until he wraps an arm around her and buries his face in her fur and sobs “Oh God, Casey. I forgot them.” 

He had been so busy on the boat and playing with Casey that he’d forgotten to be sad. 

“Dean? Baby, you coming out to watch the sunset?” Cas calls into the house. Not getting an answer, he walks inside to check where Dean might be. “Dean?” He finds him curled up in the kitchen with Casey. “Awe, Baby. What’s going on?”

Cas sits on the floor next to Dean and rubs his back as he hums. After several minutes, Dean finally lets go of the dog and latches onto Cas. 

The evening of November third, he cries to sleep in Cas’s arms. 

“Cas, this is the first time I wasn’t alone and miserable on  _ the day _ .”

“You never have to be alone on that day again. Or any day. I’m here for you, always.”

Dean wraps his arms tightly around Cas, who embraces Dean in return. Dean doesn’t want to feel anything but Cas’s body next to him. He can feel Cas’s heartbeat and Cas’s warm breath on his neck. It’s exactly what he needs right now. 

By mid week, he is calm and happy just being there with Cas. Casey seems to enjoy the time at the lake as well, she loves splashing and swimming, and barking at other boats and at the fish they catch.

* * *

 

The end of November, Dean and Cas move up into the garage apartment. Cas sets up a small studio in the second bedroom. They both love Dean’s new king size bed. Casey loves the dog door they installed, allowing her to get out into the yard any time she wants. 

Dean hauls up the Christmas decorations and they put up the tree and decorate the living room. They spend one evening making ornaments for each other, plus one for Casey.

“Hey, Cas,” Dean asks, “Can we just celebrate Christmas together? I don’t want to share you with anybody this year.”

“I like the sound of that, Baby. Cuz you know I’m selfish and like to have you all to myself.” Cas gives Dean a kiss on the cheek. 

“I was thinking we could have a dinner with Gabe and Charlie, you know, early, not at Christmas.”

“That sounds like a good plan. Do you think we should cook or order food?”

“I wanna cook, we have this nice new kitchen and all. I’m sure we can make something eatable.” Dean laughs. 

They end up making a turkey and plenty of sides, though Dean insists on getting pie and other desserts from their favorite bakery. 

The dinner is a week before Christmas and consists of Dean, Cas, Gabe, Charlie and her new girlfriend Gilda. Dean likes Gilda right away. They all laugh and talk and eat too much and play several hands of Dean’s new favorite game, Cards Against Humanity. It’s late when they finally bid their friends goodnight and merry Christmas. 

When everyone is gone, Dean flops on the couch, exhausted. Cas puts away the game and joins him. They relax for a while until Dean can’t stand it and kisses Cas behind his ear, right where his hair curls, it’s one of Dean’s favorite spots. Dean pulls off his shirt and works open the buttons of Cas’s flannel. 

He opens Cas’s shirt and kisses his chest; slipping his hand down to cup Cas’s dick. He rubs Cas through his jeans while he kisses and licks his way down his chest and over his abs. 

Cas moans at the attention; he raises his arms over his head and gives Dean full access. 

Dean unbuckles Cas’s belt, unbuttons and unzips his jeans, Cas raises his ass off the couch just enough for Dean to pull down his pants to his knees. Dean shimmies down the couch until he is face-to-cock. He takes Cas’s half hard cock into his mouth and gets it good and wet. Dean wraps his hand around Cas and strokes him until he is fully hard; watching as he grows in his hand. He kisses Cas on the hip bone while he continues even strokes with is hand; getting Cas all worked up. 

Cas whimpers when Dean licks a strip up from root to tip, then blows cool air on his hot cock. He grips the arm of the couch with both hands, allowing Dean the freedom to do what he wants.

Dean teases; kissing and licking and stroking. He fondles Cas’s balls and watches as Cas fights the urge to grab him. Dean decides to really play with Cas.

“This is fun and all, but don’t you want some pie? I think I’m gonna get us some pie.” Dean pretends to start getting off the couch.

Cas’s eyes fly open, “The fuck, Dean?” Cas sits straight up. 

“Shh, I’m just messin’ with you. You were way too tense.” Dean smiles up at Cas.

“Fuckin hell. I thought you were seriously gonna leave me for fuckin pie!” Cas cries out and flops back on the couch, “You bout gave me a heart attack.”

“Awe, sweety. You know that I like your cock better than any pie or burgers or anything.” Dean kisses the tip, rolls his tongue around, then takes Cas fully into his mouth, fisting what he can’t easily fit. 

Cas gasps, “Your mouth is like fuckin heaven, Baby.”

Dean sucks and strokes, keeping Cas right on the edge as long as he can; licking and mouthing, then sucking hard. He knows when Cas is close and he grabs Cas by the hips and takes him deep into his throat, swallowing around the tip. He comes up for air then deepthroats again until Cas can’t hold back and cums hard down his throat.

Dean cums in his jeans.

* * *

 

Dean loves his little apartment. He loves how it feels like a real home, something he’s never had before. The time spent in the pool house always felt more like another temporary living space, where the apartment has the things a house should, like a kitchen and is not a working art studio. Now, Cas uses the pool house for working and only uses the supplies at the apartment for projects he is doing for fun. When he’s home, Dean can spend time watching Cas work or hang out at the apartment. 

Charlie built Dean a laptop and he spends some of his time practicing the administrative skills she and Gabe’s secretary have been teaching him. He needs to be proficient on a computer if he plans to fulfill his goal of taking college classes, even though he’s not yet sure what he wants to study. He does know that he wants to take some cooking classes so they don't have to order meals all the time. He wants to be able to cook Cas some home made food. 

Cas and Dean have fallen into a regular routine, for the most part.  Every morning, they take Casey for a walk or a run. Cas works on smaller commissions;  once a week, Dean goes to Gabe’s office to work on his office skills; and they both have therapy on Thursdays. Gabe still throws parties, but with them living up in the apartment, they aren’t bothered if they don’t want to attend. They do attend some of the parties, sometimes Cas goes without Dean, because he does still need to stay in touch with people in the art world and with the models because he’s still taking commissions - he hasn’t taken another large commission or accepted any offers to travel since before Dean got out of the Center.

Dean is no longer afraid to take a car into town or ride to therapy alone, because now that he has Cas and Casey in his life, he's never really alone. 


End file.
